Saturday, 14 May 2011

Ideals and Practices

Each of us must have some believe in something. We have our religions, values, thoughts, ideas which influence how we interact with others in the society we live in, virtual societies included. Our upbringing, parents, friends, schooling system are among the process or influencer which shape our who we are.

As usual, the test of how much are we committed to what we believe lies in how we conduct ourselves in the day to day things that we do. At home, at work or during social activities. This is where sometimes, inconsistencies could start to appear. The higher the ability or capacity one has to influence conducts or decisions, the higher the risks of whether we are truthful to our own beliefs. For example if we are the ultimate person who decides on contracts to be awarded in a tender, do we decide based on our conscience to do the right thing or we are clouded with self-interest or other considerations which may lead towards a decision which may compromise ourselves, our organisations and even our country?

Sometimes, people pick and choose when it comes to whether to behave in line with what they believe. While they may be very consistent and particular about the form of the conduct, the same is not assured about the substance. A Muslim may be particular whether the food he consumes is halal or not but whether such discipline would be maintain when in comes to the sources of income which were used to buy the halal stuff. If one earns a living based on corrupt practices, being particular about halal food could be a manifestation of hypocrisy of the highest level.

It would be worse when the society is indifference towards this as they benefit in terms of "progress and development" accorded to them. It is not uncommon where someone is removed from a position because of his integrity but unfortunately nobody in the society makes any issue out of this. Surely we do not want a situation where promotion is based on how much one are willing to compromise, even he or she believes such act will be a sure ticket to hell.

This is certainly something that each and every of us has to reflect, especially over the weekend.